Houses in the Forest: Examples of a Dialogue with the Environment in Latin America
What role can forests play in our daily life? What can be done to make them living spaces? What strategies can you use to reduce the impact of buildings on the environment? We propose to raise awareness about the importance of forests in our daily lives this year on the International Day of Forests. Even though deforestation continues its advance, forests provide great economic, socio-ecological and social benefits.
While there are many factors that must be considered, such as accessibility, sunlight and runoff, forest areas play an essential role in combating global climate change. Future generations will benefit from their conservation.
The slogan “Forests: Sustainable Consumption and Production” is the 2022 objective. It calls for sustainable wood consumption and production, and a better environment for people and the planet. Wood is an easily renewable resource that can provide water and food free of bacteria in kitchens, as well as a variety of furniture and accessories. It can also be used to replace plastic and create new fabrics for clothing.
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Here’s a selection of houses from Latin America that use different materials and construction methods to create living spaces that minimize or minimize environmental impact, respect the environment, and foster dialogue with their natural surroundings.
Un Patio House / Lucas Maino Fernandez
- Location:Molco, Chile
- Year: 2021
“Given the terrain conditions, the placement of the tree was a major challenge. Complex problems arise from the forest’s dense nature. These include issues such as sunlight, protection, and accessibility. This is why the project decisions are presented with simple and straightforward gestures.
Tiny Modules/SET Ideas
- Location: Argentina
- Year: 2021
“This house was designed to live in the forest. Harmony with the environment is key to achieving maximum benefit and minimum impact. As you’ll see, the minimum can be used as a foundation for all design and building decisions. More architecture is possible with fewer metres.
Bioclimatic House at Villa Parque Siquiman / APS/ Pablo Senmartin arquitectos
- Location: Villa Parque Síquiman, Argentina
- Year: 2021
” […] the process proposes to delve into design, constructive, sustainable, and bioclimatic logics that incorporate new country-city relationships, reversing the historical processes of production of materials, from the extractive in situ to the low-impact dry-assembled, since The impact of our activity on the current environmental deterioration is key, construction works represent around 70% of global carbon emissions and more than 60% of the use of resources.”
Avandaro 333 Residential Complex / Zozaya Arquitectos
- Location: Valle de Bravo, Mexico
- Year: 2021
” […] a project with a coarse density displaced in a contained area, allowing the abundance of natural and common areas, promoting the full development of the users and the community. The complex also has a wastewater treatment plant as well as a storage system to water green areas. This reduces the impact of the project.
Wild House/ Mazpazz Arquitectura
- Location: Palmichal, Costa Rica
- Year: 2021
” […] a brutalist tropical haven. The house is 100% OFF-the-grid and relies on solar energy for power and on spring water captured uphill on the property. The architect wanted to frame the natural surroundings and capture the cosmic energies at this privileged location. The materials used in the construction of the house were chosen for their ability to withstand the harsh elements and climates of the tropics. […] The design’s pure geometrical shapes create the desired contrast between architecture and natural surroundings.”
Kaizen House / Rama Estudio
- Location: Tumbaco, Ecuador
- Year: 2021
“The house was built in a carob tree grove in the middle of a gently sloping topography. It tries to minimize any impact on the natural environment. They took advantage of the shade provided by the trees.
6×6 Shelter / Colle-Croce
- Location: San Andrés de Giles, Argentina
- Year: 2020
This small structure is adaptable to the terrain and can be used as an addition to the main house. Its temporary use allows a reduced program and gives it a self-sufficient condition, since, in certain environments, it can work “unplugged” from the supply networks. The original purpose of the camp was to be able to camp in natural areas, such as parks, forests, mountains, beaches, and suburban lands.
Ocoxal House / A-001 Taller de Arquitectura
- Location: Valle de Bravo, Mexico
- Year: 2020
“For the client, it was very important to inhabit a space that could generate life cycles with the environment, that is why the leitmotif of the project was to create a bridge with the territory, through the conservation and use of existing natural resources that will be a source of vitality for the vegetables and the fruit trees (all the existing trees on the property were preserved), as well as the bees and the chickens.”
ZGZ House / iHouse estudio
- Location:Blancarena Uruguay
- Year: 2020
“The commission was to build a rest house, cozy as the wooden cabins that are typical of the hemisphere in which it resides, but in an enclave that can withstand the vertiginousness modern life and contemplate all its comforts. It also had to make rational use resources to minimize the impact on the environment.
Fortunata House / Luciano Lerner Basso
- Location: Brazil
- Year: 2020
“Its insertion into the landscape is a direct reaction to the constraints. The main volume is supported by a piloti, which delicately touches the ground and conforms to the terrain’s natural contours. This goal is to minimize intervention in the topography. […] The native vegetation was preserved almost in its entirety. The original terrain would not have been altered if a crane could lift the house and transport it to another location.
House in Molvento / Tectum arquitectura
- Location: Los Molinos, Córdoba, Argentina
- Year: 2020
“The site is gently sloped towards the lake and is characterized as a treeless clearing in a dense, eucalyptus-forest. It is here that it is decided to place the house in a way that does not affect the existing grove.
Native House / David Regalado Arquitectura
- Location: Malacatos, Ecuador
- Year: 2020
” […] The site is still a forest, which preserves the ecology of the place. This gave rise to the name “Native House”, because the owners of the property, a Canadian couple from Canada, wanted a house that would adapt to the natural environment and topography of the area and have the least impact on the landscape.
Black House/ ArquitectnicA Cecilia Yarmuch + Alejandro Aguilera
- Location:Consolapan, Mexico
- Year: 2020
“The house rises” to allow for the growth of the roots and passage of wild animals. Let rainwater flow, but not in contact with the soil. Cross ventilation helps to maintain comfort and good health by dehumidifying the environment. The study, on the other hand, is “buried” and integrated into the garden with green roof to provide a view that cannot be seen from the house.
3×3 Retreat / Estudio Diagonal
- Location: La Unión, Chile
- Year: 2019
“Design a place that allows you to relax and is free from the distractions of work. You can use it for everyday use, but not for extended periods. You should not disturb the natural surroundings, but instead, enhance them. […] This clearing between the trees presents an opportunity to minimise the impact that construction may have on the forest.”
Guayacan House/ Salagnac Arquitectos
- Location:Nosara, Costa Rica
- Year: 2019
“Casa Guayacán was built in masonry, metal, wood and glass under common construction methods in the area. […] In the part of energy saving, Casa Guayacán has a solar panel system that provides 100% autonomy day and night. As a final result, the design of Casa Guayacán is a composition of simple lines and geometric solids with a detailed lattice of serial woods, a combination of solidity and transparency.”
Patagonia Complex / Estudio Base Arquitectos
- Location:Chile, Patagonia
- Year: 2019
“The project has a low environmental impact as it is capable to produce all the energy required through a series solar panels that are mounted on the roof. The panels also store the energy in the batteries within the houses. The entire electrical project can be operated on low-consumption LED equipment.
House 81 / TAM – Guillermo Elgart
- Location: Mar del Plata, Argentina
- Year: 2019
“The Eucalyptus tree forest is the most valuable thing.” It is important to not touch it but to be a part of it. The main task was to survey all trees 3D in order find the clearings that could be used. […] The house is a journey, it is being at any level, outside and inside, under or above, like climbing the limbs of a sturdy tree.”
Woven House / Santiago Pradilla + Zuloark
- Location: Nocaima, Cundinamarca, Colombia
- Year: 2019
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” […] we are obsessed with proposing architectures with materials that are more in keeping with the places where they are located, generating less impact, providing high-quality architectural solutions and innovation, without all of this entailing an excessive increase in price. Casa Tejida was founded on the idea of exploring and trying to innovate in this area by using prefabricated solutions but with a high level of craftsmanship. The woodwork and metal details were made as pieces that can be assembled on-site.
House in the woods / WEYES ESTUDIO
- Location:Santiago, Mexico
- Year: 2018
“The project seeks the maximum use of the resources provided by immediate context. The vast vegetation creates an environment of shadows and cool breezes that contrasts the extreme climate of the city. We are located beneath the tree canopy but above the natural terrain. We have access to views, ventilation, and controlled sunlight exposure. The project’s guiding principle was to create a “Minimal Footprint” on the site.
Forest House / L2 Arquitectura
- Location: Melipilla, Chile
- Year: 2018
“The Commission includes three main conditions. It must respond to the life of its owner who wants to live in Santiago, and the best optimization of monetary and other resources. Finally, it must respect and care about the environment in which it will be located.”
C House / Estudio PKa
- Location: Costa Esmeralda, Argentina
- Year: 2018
“The biggest challenge we faced was to think of a different way of seeing the house from the forest path; starting with the side access that invites us to dive into the forest and then enter through the centre via an internal courtyard. The inclusion of the nature and vegetation inside the house was a priority. This created courtyards at different scales that allow for fluid interior-exterior relationships. […] The correct orientation was prioritized to reduce the energy cost of air conditioning and heating.”
Mallarauco House / OF Arquitectos
- Location: Mallarauco, Chile
- Year: 2018
” […] to carry out the whole structure and partitioning of the house by means of a prefabricated wood system, with which we minimized the times of work, the impact and the possible damages that the construction could cause to the existing trees considerably. This will also allow you to connect with the dominant material of the area.
Nonosi House / Inverse Project
- Location: San Antonio, Costa Rica
- Year: 2018
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” […] A sustainable home with low energy usage and minimal environmental impact was a key goal. Costa Rica has 90% of its electricity produced from renewable sources, including wind, geothermal, hydro and geothermal. Despite this, the designers tried to reduce energy consumption. […] The reusing of a large portion of the existing structure helps reduce CO2 emissions.”
Casa R / Felipe Lagos
- Location:Vilches, Chile
- Year: 2018
“This house has two floors to save the views of the valley and the surrounding landscape. This is also because the ground on the first floor will be occupied to prevent ecological damage or removal of trees. The house placement didn’t have any effect on any native tree or other plant.